Around 9 p.m. on Monday night, a group known as McGillLeaks sent all McGill undergraduate students an email using the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) Vice-President (VP) Internal’s email account. The email contained a message to the McGill community, incorporating McGillLeaks’ stated purpose, and an attached link to various[Read More…]
Articles by Andra Cernavskis
Year in Review
September, 2012 – PQ Elected On Sept. 4, 2012, the Parti Québécois (PQ) was elected into a minority government. The elections occurred after months of student protests against the former Liberal government’s proposed tuition increases. As part of their platform, the PQ promised to cancel the tuition increases. The new[Read More…]
Faculty of Arts changes People, Processes, and Partnerships plan
Early last week, Dean of the Faculty of Arts Christopher Manfredi announced changes to the plan known as People, Processes, and Partnerships (PPP). While the project was initially slated to restructure how space is used in the Leacock Building, followed by similar reconfiguration in 688 Sherbrooke and the Ferrier Building,[Read More…]
Proposed Leacock reconfiguration incites controversy
Over the course of last week, top administrators in the Faculty of Arts began to address concerns from students, faculty, and support staff about the Faculty’s “People, Processes & Partnerships” project. This new plan proposes changes to departmental space configurations in the Leacock building. Currently, a project team of 75[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada
Montreal police crack down on one-year anniversary protest;
Cree group to finish 1,600 km trek in support of Idle No More movement in Ottawa;
TVO pulls online game that shows pipeline bombing;
Manitobans suffering from flood damages sue Province;
One-man Hunger Strike begins in Vancouver
Concordia’s full-time faculty union ready to strike
In the midst of difficult and on-going negotiations with the administration, the Concordia University Faculty Association (CUFA)—the union that represents all full-time faculty members at Concordia, including professors and librarians—voted 74 per cent in favour of a strike mandate on Mar. 9. The mandate allows CUFA to go on strike[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada?
Hundreds arrested at Montreal anti-police brutality protest
Ford conflict-of-interest case to go to Supreme Court
Canada slips in UN human development rankings
Education Summit
On Feb. 25 and 26, the Parti Québécois (PQ) hosted 61 organizations and groups at its long-anticipated Summit on Higher Education. Over the course of two days, the now-familiar sound of student protests continued in the streets of downtown Montreal, as thousands publicly expressed their disappointment with the actions of[Read More…]
Suzanne Fortier appointed as McGill’s next Principal
On Mar. 5, Stuart H. (Kip) Cobbett, chair of McGill’s Board of Governors (BoG), announced that Dr. Suzanne Fortier had been appointed as McGill’s 17th principal. She will begin her five-year term in September, at which point she will officially replace McGill’s first female principal, Heather Munroe-Blum. The BoG appointed[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada?
Student protests continue in Montreal Violence broke out in the streets of Montreal on the night of Mar. 5, as students protested the tuition fee increase recently announced by the Parti Québécois (PQ). Police declared the march illegal, as the protestors did not provide a route as required by municipal[Read More…]
Exclusive interview with Suzanne Fortier
Although many students are currently out-of-town for reading week, Stuart H. (Kip) Cobbett, chair of McGill’s Board of Governors, announced on Tuesday Mar. 5 that Dr. Suzanne Fortier has been selected as McGill’s new principal. Fortier will be leaving her post as president of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research[Read More…]
Asbestos at McGill: one year later
As a large research university, McGill is one of the world’s leading institutions when it comes to scientific breakthroughs. With this title, however, comes great responsibility and a stringent public eye. In the past few years, McGill has received internal and external criticism on some of the research projects conducted[Read More…]
Universities underfunded, PGSS declares at Council
The Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) of McGill University has publically taken the stance that Quebec universities are under-funded. Last Wednesday, PGSS Council passed a motion calling for the Society to take this position in preparation for the upcoming Quebec Education Summit scheduled for Feb. 25 and 26. According to the[Read More…]
McGill releases new documents on how to deal with protests
McGill released the latest set of documents regarding protests and demonstrations on campus on Monday. Originally a draft protocol on demonstrations, these documents consist of a Statement of Values and Principles on freedom of expression and freedom of assembly, and a set of Operating Procedures regarding demonstrations, protests, and occupations[Read More…]
Meet members of the McGill community recently elected to the BoG
Edith Zorychta Edith Zorychta was elected in November as a Senate Representative to the Board of Governors (BoG). Zorychta is an associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, and currently sits on the McGill Senate. She decided to run for the position following her colleagues’ encouragement at McGill,[Read More…]
What happened last week in Canada?
MUHC links to Kuwait questioned The Montreal Gazette has raised questions about the transparency and resource management of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), after unearthing details about its role in a five-year agreement between Montreal Medical International Inc. (MMI) and the government of Kuwait. The agreement, which was signed[Read More…]
McGill Principal says universities will face more budget cuts
At the Jan. 23 McGill Senate meeting, Principal Heather Munroe-Blum spoke on the government-imposed university budget cuts that the Parti Québécois (PQ) announced in December. Vice-President (Finance and Administration) Michael Di Grappa also updated Senate on the progress of the Statement of Values and Principles concerning freedom of expression and[Read More…]
Meet the McGill staff members recently elected to the BoG
Two members of the McGill community were elected and re-lected to McGill’s Board of Governors (BoG) in November for terms starting on Jan. 1. Juliet Johnson, professor of political science, was elected for her first term, and Ronald Critchley, president of the McGill University Non-Academic Staff Association (MUNASA), was re-elected[Read More…]
Brown professor David Egilman questions asbestos research
On Jan. 4, David Egilman, a clinical professor in the department of family medicine at Brown University, debated members of the McGill community on the topic of asbestos research at McGill. The presentation, which Egilman called a “counter-conference,” meant to address a talk given by McGill Epidemiology Professor Bruce Case[Read More…]
Poor advertising suggested as cause of low AUS GA turnout
On Monday night, the Arts Undergraduate Society (AUS) failed to meet quorum at its Fall General Assembly (GA). The GA passed several motions as a consultative forum, including motions mandating AUS support for accessible education and for the AUS to help promote departmental GAs. The AUS began holding GAs in[Read More…]
Minister of Higher Education suggests legalizing student strikes
Two weeks ago, Quebec Minister of Higher Education Pierre Duchesne proposed that the government grant student associations the legal right to strike. Last spring, many student associations across Quebec voted to go on strike to oppose the former Liberal government’s proposed tuition increases. The Liberal government did not recognize these[Read More…]
McGill Senate discusses student disciplinary procedures
On Nov. 14, the McGill Senate met to discuss student disciplinary cases during the 2011-2012 academic year. Interim Dean of Students Linda Starkey presented the Committee on Student Discipline’s (CDS) annual report. The Senate also heard a presentation by Vice-Principal Research and International Relations Rose Goldstein on how McGill could[Read More…]
SSMU Council endorses one of two fall referendum questions
Last Thursday, SSMU Legislative Council passed a motion to endorse a referendum question that would increase the fee levy for the McGill Student Emergency Response Team (M-SERT), but did not endorse a question on Radio CKUT’s fee increase. Councillors also discussed the four nonbinding motions passed by the Oct. 15[Read More…]
SSMU plans for McGill education summit move forward
On Oct. 22, members of La Table de Concertation Étudiante du Québec (TaCEQ) met for a preliminary meeting in Quebec City to discuss the upcoming Quebec education summit, which the provincial government has slated to occur in early 2013. As the provincial summit draws closer, McGill students are also working to[Read More…]
Team Ghostshell hacks university servers around the globe
On Oct. 1, a hacking group under the moniker Team Ghostshell unleashed “ProjectWestWind,” a venture that has since leaked 120,000 records from 100 universities worldwide. The group targeted major learning institutions like Harvard and Cambridge, as well as two Canadian universities—McMaster University and the University of British Columbia. The group[Read More…]
SSMU Council tables GA motions
At last Thursday’s Council meeting of the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU), concerns about ambiguity in the SSMU constitution led councillors to vote to commit all nonbinding motions passed in the Oct. 15 SSMU General Assembly (GA) to the Steering and Policy committees. These committees will investigate SSMU constitutional[Read More…]
Mary Gordon on the importance of fostering empathy
As part of Desautels’ Homecoming festivities last Friday, McGill’s Social Economy Initiative (SEI) hosted a presentation by social entrepreneur Mary Gordon in the Bronfman Building. Gordon spoke to the audience about Roots of Empathy, the classroom program she founded 17 years ago to help address aggression and bullying, and to[Read More…]
PGSS Council discusses McGill and Quebec education summits
Last Wednesday, the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) held its October council meeting. The meeting featured discussion about the upcoming Quebec and McGill Education Summits, and included a presentation by a representative from the Fédération Étudiante Universitaire du Québec (FEUQ). The newly elected Parti Québécois (PQ) government is to hold a[Read More…]
Hundreds march for missing, murdered Indigenous women
Last Thursday evening, approximately 300 people participated in Montreal’s 7th Annual Sisters in Spirit March and Vigil for Missing and Murdered Native Women. This year’s Spirit March, held the same night as over 100 similar marches, focused on the theme of government accountability. The Spirit March has been held annually[Read More…]
Innushkueu women speak out against Plan Nord at Concordia
Tears and laughter found their space in a discussion titled “Defending the Land: Indigenous Women’s resistance to Plan Nord and community violence.” The event, held last Friday, was hosted by Concordia University’s Centre for Gender Advocacy’s Missing Justice campaign. Plan Nord is the provincial government’s plan to develop northern regions[Read More…]
McGill admin hosts BBQ for students and staff
Students, professors, staff, and other members of the McGill community gathered in James Square for a barbecue hosted by senior members of McGill’s administration on Sept. 13. Serving free burgers, veggie burgers, and hot dogs to approximately 3,500 people, the barbecue is the latest effort on the part of the[Read More…]